Building rapport over the phone can be very simple to do if you take the time to listen to what the person on the other end of the phone. The more you know in advance about the person you are talking to is helpful, but if you don't listening will allow you to latch onto something in common that you can comment upon. To get the person talking try asking some simple questions that can't be
. answered with a simple yes or no - also known as open ended questions. An example of this may be to ask about where they live (people either love to brag or complain about their home towns) and get a short conversation going. Be sure to praise anything positive they have to say or agree and commiserate with anything negative they may mention. But, the most important thing you can do when you are speaking to someone on the phone is to smile. Even though it seems somewhat impossible the smile will actually come through in the tone of your voice.
